Louisiana native guitarist, vocalist and songwriter D.K. Harrell is a Blues Music Award-winning star of the current blues resurgence. Known for stinging string bends and deep soul vocals, he released his Alligator Records debut album, Talkin’ Heavy.
DUG is a musical venture featuring songwriter Conor Lorkin O Reilly and California banjo player Jonny Pickett. Drawing on Irish and American traditions, their debut single Jubilee earned two 2024 Grammy nominations for Best Americana Roots Song and Best Americana Roots Performance.
Izzy Hagerup releases music under the moniker Prewn. She wrote and recorded her albums entirely by herself in bedroom sessions. Her releases include the 2023 LP Through The Window, praised by Pitchfork, and the nine-song album System.
The Takes are a Portland, Oregon folk rock group blending rock riffs with folk songwriting. The band features Sumner Rahr, Guido Rahr, and Phoebe Webb, crafting songs rooted in rock and shaped by Pacific Northwest traditions.
Formed by two lifelong friends rooted in the Texas Hill Country, the folk-rock duo Briscoe expanded their American roots sound with their album Heat of July. Produced by Grammy-nominated Brad Cook, the record features guest musicians from Bon Iver and Houndmouth.
Austin, Texas-born Shakey Graves, aka Alejandro Rose-Garcia, known for his innovative musical experiences, engages fans with unique releases. He creates immersive adventures, including personalized CDs and exclusive digital tracks, allowing fans to explore his music.
Founded in San Francisco in 2008 by brothers Ben and Alex Morrison, roots band The Brothers Comatose fuse string band instrumentation with rock and roll. The quintet has released six LPs, including their debut Songs From The Stoop and Golden Grass, racked up nearly 50 million streams, and played major festivals.
Country singer-songwriter Channing Wilson, from LaFayette, Georgia, released his debut album Dead Man, produced by nine-time Grammy winner Dave Cobb. Wilson has written alongside Guy Clark, penned songs for Luke Combs, and reached a wide audience as a finalist on The Road.
Ben Chapman is a country-fried funky-tonk artist who has made his Grand Ole Opry debut and released three acclaimed albums. He has written songs for Hayes Carll, Brent Cobb, and Marcus King, and released the album Feet on Fire, produced by Anderson East.
Raised in Southeast D.C., socially conscious MC Sa-Roc gained acclaim for her insightful lyricism and the 2018 anthem Forever. She released the acclaimed album The Sharecropper's Daughter in 2020, followed by a 2021 deluxe edition featuring The Rebirth with MF DOOM.
Fronted by Joey Quiñones, East Los Angeles R&B and soul band Thee Sinseers formed in 2019. Known for their modern interpretation of soul music and 1960s-adjacent tone using earthier instrumentation, they released the album Love Stories on Colemine Records.
Originating from Los Angeles, soulful blues band The Altons blend genres, drawing from diverse cultural roots and psychedelic influences. Known for their dreamy harmonies, they have performed at Summer Fest and Corona Capital. Their releases include Float with Penrose Records.
Brooklyn-based indie rock duo Widowspeak, formed in 2010, blends dream pop, country twang, and shoegaze into hazy, haunting songs. Known for Molly Hamilton's languid vocals and Robert Earl Thomas's guitar, their discography includes acclaimed albums like 2022's The Jacket and their 2026 release, Roses, showcasing their unique "cowboy pop" sound.
Bay Area indie hip-hop artist Lyrics Born is a barrier-breaking rapper known for his baritone voice and lyricism. A Quannum Projects member, his debut album Later That Day was named among Rolling Stone's greatest hip-hop albums. He has also acted in films like Sorry To Bother You.
Acclaimed singer-songwriter Steve Earle released his chart-topping debut album Guitar Town in 1986. A Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee and Grand Ole Opry member, he earned consecutive Grammy Awards for albums including The Revolution Starts Now and Townes, and his hit Copperhead Road became an official Tennessee state song.
Jamaican singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Clinton Fearon was bassist and lyricist for The Gladiators and a prominent 1970s session musician at Studio One and Black Ark. He later relocated to Seattle, forming The Defenders and eventually the Boogie Brown Band, releasing twelve albums.
Hogslop String Band blends old-time traditional string music with wild rock and roll energy. The group features singer and fiddler Kevin Martin, guitarist and singer Gabriel Kelley, banjo player and singer Daniel Binkley, and bassist Pickle.
Alela Diane is a contemporary folk artist known for her clear-eyed songwriting and mellifluous voice. Born from grief and community, her seventh album, Who’s Keeping Time?, was recorded live in her Portland home with close collaborators, showcasing a fuller, communal sound.
Philadelphia-based country-rock band Friendship features Dan Wriggins, Michael Cormier-O’Leary, Jon Samuels, and Peter Gill, with roots in Maine. Fronted by Wriggins's ragged baritone, the group released the album Caveman Wakes Up.
Ken Pomeroy is a singer-songwriter known for her intimate style and universal themes. She made her Rounder Records debut with the 2025 album Cruel Joke, which earned praise from NPR's Ann Powers as the work of a generational talent.
Mercury is an American alternative rock project architected by singer-songwriter Maddie Kerr and based in Nashville, Tennessee. Known for a massive wall-of-sound indie rock style, the project blends ethereal vocals with grungy guitars and deeply vulnerable lyricism, gaining widespread recognition with releases like the 2024 EP Together We Are One, You and I.
Florry, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, crafts a blend of alternative country, indie rock, and cowpunk. Led by Francie Medosch, the band is celebrated for energetic live performances and honest lyrics. Notable albums include The Holey Bible (2023), an "Album of the Week" at Stereogum, and Sounds Like... (2025). They have toured with artists like Kurt Vile.
Hudson Freeman is a Brooklyn-based lofi-folk artist, originally from Waxahachie, TX, with formative years in Eswatini. His music blends folk intimacy with alt-rock unease, exploring themes of faith and belonging. Known for resonant songwriting, he released the album "is a folk artist" and the popular single "If You Know Me." He collaborated on the "Adult Contemporary" EP with The Bedroomer.
The Womack Sisters, BG, Zeimani, and Kucha, are Los Angeles-based R&B and soul artists from a legendary musical lineage, granddaughters of Sam Cooke and daughters of Womack & Womack. Known for their powerful harmonies and emotive vocals, they blend retro and modern soul. Their work includes the "Legacy" EP and their Daptone Records album, "The Womack Sisters".
Ana Frango Eletrico, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, poet, and visual artist. Known for a genre-bending sound blending indie pop, MPB, jazz, and experimental elements, she has released acclaimed albums like "Little Electric Chicken Heart" (Latin Grammy nominated) and "Me Chama de Gato Que Eu Sou Sua". She also won a Latin Grammy as a co-producer.
Baltimore brothers Baird & Gabe Acheson (Goldwash) craft raw, prolific S/H/E experiments—live takes, feedback & fantasy characters; anti-rollout, instinct-first music.
Automatic, an L.A. DIY band formed in 2017, blends synths, drums, and bass with vocals. Known for explosive live shows, they've toured internationally and opened for Bauhaus.
Esther Rose released the 11-track album Want (New West Records, 2025), produced by Ross Farbe and recorded live-to-tape at Nashville’s Bomb Shelter. A follow-up to 2023’s Safe to Run, it features Dean Johnson and members of Video Age.
Formed in Boise, Idaho, in 1993 by singer and guitarist Doug Martsch, Built to Spill is an indie rock band known for intricate guitar work and dynamic live shows. The group gained acclaim with albums like There's Nothing Wrong with Love and Perfect from Now On.
San Francisco's Acid King, formed 1993 by Lori S., Joey Osbourne, and Peter Lucas, pioneered stoner and doom metal. Known for heavy, psychedelic soundscapes, relentless riffing, and Lori S.'s haunting vocals, their influential albums include Busse Woods, III, and Beyond Vision, which charted on Billboard. Their sound features thick, sludgy guitar tones and fuzz.
Hailing from Portland, Oregon, indie rock duo Quasi features singer, guitarist, and keyboardist Sam Coomes and drummer Janet Weiss. Known for acclaimed albums like Featuring Birds and The Sword of God, the pair combine tuneful rock with humor, while also playing in other prominent acts.
Meridian Brothers, avant-garde band formed in Bogotá (1998), blends salsa, cumbia & vallenato with electronic experiments; key name in Latin America’s psychedelic scene.
Hannah Frances is a Vermont-based vocalist, guitarist, composer, dancer, and poet with roots in Chicago. Her 2024 album Keeper of the Shepherd earned Pitchfork’s Best New Music. She blends progressive rock, avant-folk, contemporary classical, and jazz.
Buenos Aires-born, Miami-raised Seattle producer Martín Selasco’s Terror/Cactus blends digital folklore & psychedelic electro-cumbia with chicha, cumbia & folk.
Brooklyn-born jazz guitarist/composer Mary Halvorson crafts elastic, contrapuntal music; DownBeat Jazz Album of the Year (3x) & Guitarist of the Year (2023–24).
Born in Vermont, Caitlin Canty makes gritty, dreamy American folk; acclaimed for 2015’s Reckless Skyline; tours US/Europe; collabs with Peter Bradley Adams & Jamey Johnson.
LA rocker Chad Ubovich’s Meatbodies: Cali garage punk/neo-psych with guitar-heavy punch and pop hooks; key albums Meatbodies, Alice & 333.
Born in Louisiana and shaped by Arkansas, Dylan Earl makes a progressive country and western sound with wry wit and nostalgia. His album Level-Headed Even Smile explores identity and formative years. He’s toured USA and EU/UK, sharing stages with Esther Rose and Nick Shoulders.
Rumbo Tumba is Argentine multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer Facundo Salgado, reimagining South American folk roots with organic loops. A live-looping one-man orchestra, he’s toured 30+ countries over 14 years and has 40M+ streams.
Folk Bitch Trio is a folk trio of former high school friends Heide Peverelle, Jeanie Pilkington and Gracie Sinclair. Their debut album Now Would Be A Good Time mixes vivid, visceral storytelling with dark humor and irony.
Rio de Janeiro-born singer/songwriter/producer Marcos Valle spans bossa nova, MPB and funk. His 1965 album O Compositor e o Cantor featured the classic, widely covered "Samba de Verão". He later collaborated with Stacey Kent and Jazz Is Dead.
El Khat, led by Eyal El Wahab, is a Berlin-based trio of Yemeni descent. They create "junkyard funk" by blending traditional Yemeni folk with psychedelic rock, often using unique self-made instruments from discarded items. Known for revitalizing ancient sounds, their acclaimed albums include "Saadia Jefferson," "Albat Alawi Op. 99," and "mute." They received a Songlines Music Awards nomination.
Portland, OR six-piece art-punk band Buddy Wynkoop: shout-sung, jagged guitars, spoken-word; Devo/IDLES/Parquet Courts vibe; explosive live cult act.
Setting, an instrumental trio from Durham, North Carolina, features Nathan Bowles, Jaime Fennelly, and Joe Westerlund. They craft joyous, experimental electro-acoustic music, blending rustic folk with hypnotic cosmic rock through group improvisations. Notable albums include "Shone a Rainbow Light On" and their self-titled release.
